Roof repair being suggested

Graz160 · Feb 11, 2018

We have a 2016 Bighorn 3570RS. We try to have it maintained properly, but we may have missed something.
At Camping World service last week, we took the RV to get everything tip top for a long summer trip this year to Alaska.
I received this portion of an email from the service advisor yesterday"
"Looks like you will need a complete roof peel and seal due to deteriorated roof sealant; tech will need to scrape off the old and apply new self-leveling sealant. This estimate alone is $1,750.00"
What does she mean? Did we miss some annual maintenance to cause this deterioration? Should we do this?
Thanks in advance for any advice.

cookie · Feb 11, 2018

Have you seen the area in question? Pics?
I would not take CW's word for that.
If it really does need to be glued I have heard of some repairs using a hypodermic needle and glue. No major repair doing it that way.
But, I have heard that and have not actually seen it.
I most certainly would get a second opinion.

Peace
Dave

Pizzaguy · Feb 11, 2018

I would be very hesitant on this also. Sounds like they are trying to say all the roof caulking needs to be replaced if they are using self leveling sealant. Did you check and maintain your roof caulking each year with your maintenance schedule? I still strongly doubt that it is all that bad. I would ask to see the problem areas. I would take it to another dealer than Camping World also. They do not have a very good reputation.

wrgrs50s · Feb 11, 2018

Even if it does need all the dicor sealant replaced its only 3 or 4 tubes of self leveling sealant @ $10 or so per tube, and about 3 to 4 hrs labor. The price they are quoting is ridiculous.

danemayer · Feb 11, 2018

Washing and re-caulking the roof might take several hours and $20-30 in caulk. Sounds like they have a "special" service with a very special price.

jerryjay11 · Feb 11, 2018

cookie said:
Have you seen the area in question? Pics?
I would not take CW's word for that.
If it really does need to be glued I have heard of some repairs using a hypodermic needle and glue. No major repair doing it that way.
But, I have heard that and have not actually seen it.
I most certainly would get a second opinion.

Peace
Dave

I would agree with cookie. My 2007 Starcraft had it's original roof and sealant. The roof became crazed and the lap sealant was cracked. I cleaned lap sealant, applied new lap sealant and applied a two-part product from Dicor to the roof which renewed it to a new roof look. Can't imagine your unit that bad already.

Graz160 · Feb 11, 2018

Pizzaguy said:
I would be very hesitant on this also. Sounds like they are trying to say all the roof caulking needs to be replaced if they are using self leveling sealant. Did you check and maintain your roof caulking each year with your maintenance schedule? I still strongly doubt that it is all that bad. I would ask to see the problem areas. I would take it to another dealer than Camping World also. They do not have a very good reputation.

Yes, we did the annual complete caulking. In fact the CW here did the job each year, spring of 2016 & 2017.

BouseBill · Feb 11, 2018

Get a second opinion, and take it somewhere other than CW!
I have our dealer check and re-caulk as necessary every year, along with the wheel bearings, the cost is nowhere near your quote

Pizzaguy · Feb 11, 2018

Graz160 said:
Yes, we did the annual complete caulking. In fact the CW here did the job each year, spring of 2016 & 2017.

If Camping World did the work the first 2 years and now it needs a complete strip, they did very poor workmanship the first two times. I call foul, take it to another trusted dealer unless Camping World will stand behind their work. I would not return there for work in the future either.

jerryjay11 · Feb 11, 2018

Pizzaguy said:
If Camping World did the work the first 2 years and now it needs a complete strip, they did very poor workmanship the first two times. I call foul, take it to another trusted dealer unless Camping World will stand behind their work. I would not return there for work in the future either.

Good point!

Graz160 · Feb 12, 2018

Here is the reply from CW after I pushed back on the work being suggested. Any comments?

[FONT=&quot]"Sealant is only warrantied for 90 days, as that is the life of it. No manufacturer warranties the sealant after the first 90 days of ownership. Every other year, you should do a complete peel and seal. At that point, the new sealant over the old will not adhere properly and you will see water intrusion. So on the off year, you could do a spot seal, which is what was done last year. I will get photos today at my first opportunity. You will find additional information on the sealant in your owners manual."

[/FONT]So they are saying that it needs it every other year!!!

mlpeloquin · Feb 12, 2018

Graz160 said:
Here is the reply from CW after I pushed back on the work being suggested. Any comments?

"Sealant is only warrantied for 90 days, as that is the life of it. No manufacturer warranties the sealant after the first 90 days of ownership. Every other year, you should do a complete peel and seal. At that point, the new sealant over the old will not adhere properly and you will see water intrusion. So on the off year, you could do a spot seal, which is what was done last year. I will get photos today at my first opportunity. You will find additional information on the sealant in your owners manual."

So they are saying that it needs it every other year!!!

No way. Get it back ASAP! Take it to and independent RV repair business and don't tell them about Camping World. Have them inspect your roof. If they are honest, you won't need anything done. Then tell them what CW told you!

JohnDar · Feb 12, 2018

Somehow this post of mine got tagged to a different thread, but here's my take on it.

If nothing else, contact a mobile technician to take a look at your roof. Even if he does a full recaulking job, you"ll still have many hundreds of $$ in your pocket. Now, if the problem is actually delamination of the rubber roof from the substrate, you might be in for some serious repairs. I've recaulked my roof areas several times since we've owned it and it's not that big of a deal. The Dicor self-leveling caulk flows on over the old (that's been cleaned). I like to use a plastic spatula to smooth it nicely before it starts to skin.

If they want to peel the old caulk from the rubber roof, they risk tearing the roof membrane. Dicor does not recommend peeling the old caulk off. And the caulk only good for 90 days! I don't think so.

danemayer · Feb 12, 2018

Graz160 said:
Here is the reply from CW after I pushed back on the work being suggested. Any comments?

"Sealant is only warrantied for 90 days, as that is the life of it. No manufacturer warranties the sealant after the first 90 days of ownership. Every other year, you should do a complete peel and seal. At that point, the new sealant over the old will not adhere properly and you will see water intrusion. So on the off year, you could do a spot seal, which is what was done last year. I will get photos today at my first opportunity. You will find additional information on the sealant in your owners manual."

So they are saying that it needs it every other year!!!

They're conflating two different topics. The warranty on the coach includes 90 days coverage on caulking and sealants. After that it's up to the owner to maintain caulking and sealants.

If you look in your trailer manual, you'll find a maintenance schedule. It calls for the owner to inspect every 3 months and re-caulk or re-seal as required. I've attached the maintenance schedule for 2015 Landmark.

What you won't find is any statement in the maintenance schedule that requires or advises "Every other year, you should do a complete peel and seal." That appears to be something determined by CW as being necessary, in addition to the manufacturer's recommended maintenance. Or maybe it's just a way to make a lot of money for a little bit of work.

I've also attached 2 pages from Dicor's roof care booklet that deal with Lap Sealant. Notice they don't recommend anything to support CW's statement, and Dicor makes the roof and the sealants.

jerryjay11 · Feb 12, 2018

I've mentioned this before and have found good information regarding lap sealant and roof coatings. Take some time and read the information that Dicor has on their site. You can even get real timely answers from their techs by calling or emailing. Lap sealant can be cleaned and new self-leveling lap sealant applied. I've done this several times on our last camper (2007 Starcraft) and even applied a roof coating from Dicor that made the roof look like new and never had any problems with roof leaks.

Pizzaguy · Feb 12, 2018

mlpeloquin said:
No way. Get it back ASAP! Take it to and independent RV repair business and don't tell them about Camping World. Have them inspect your roof. If they are honest, you won't need anything done. Then tell them what CW told you!

X2. Get it out of there and take it to somebody who knows what they are doing and not trying to screw you!

NHCelt · Feb 13, 2018

And that is why camping world has the reputation that they have...Attention, Marcus Lemonus!

wdk450 · Feb 13, 2018

I put Dicor roof sealant tape (like Eternabond) over all of my roof edges and sealant points. This stuff is good for a minimum of 15 years with no maintenance. It comes in various widths and roll lengths.

Graz160 · Feb 13, 2018

I think you all will be interested in seeing the pictures I had them take yesterday.

jerryjay11 · Feb 13, 2018

Graz160 said:
I think you all will be interested in seeing the pictures I had them take yesterday.

That's all it is? Do yourself a favor and check out the instructional videos on Dicor.com about products to clean and reseal those seams. Buy yourself some self leveling sealant and be done with it. I see no need here to rip up all that sealant. It's normal for this stuff to crack and as long as you keep up with it then it isn't a problem. Mine was in worst condition on the old camper and all I did was clean and reseal without lifting any old sealant off. Never had any leaks.

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